Family of Thai Princess Is Stripped of Royal Name
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Family of Thai Princess Is Stripped of Royal Name
BANGKOK — In a rare public display of palace intrigue in Thailand, relatives of a prominent member of the royal family have been charged with numerous counts of corruption and stripped of their royally bestowed name.
The implications of the still-unfolding palace purge are not yet fully clear but come at a time of extreme sensitivity surrounding the monarchy, a potent symbol of national unity in a country that has been deeply divided politically for the past decade. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 86, is ailing, and the current scandal adds to a widespread sense of anxiety about succession.
The family members targeted in the purge are related to Princess Srirasm, the wife of Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn and the mother of Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, the presumed heir to the throne after his father.
The scandal began to unfold last week when a group of police officers who have links to the princess’s family was arrested. The group, which police say was led by Lt. Gen. Pongpat Chayapan, the powerful former head of the criminal investigation unit, was accused of running illegal casinos, oil smuggling and money laundering, among other crimes.
Troves of what the police say was ill-gotten wealth were paraded for the news media and prominently displayed on front pages, including what resembled a small museum of ancient Buddhist artifacts. The police also said they had seized 24 gold bars, hundreds of Buddhist amulets, stacks of property deeds and 80 truckloads of rare timber. The police dug out many of the items from an underground vault and released images of a backhoe tearing down a wall to get at them.
Reports of police corruption are common in Thailand, but the highly unusual twist in the case was the charge of lèse-majesté, specifically the allegation, not fully elaborated on by the authorities, that the accused used symbols of the monarchy for their own benefit.
On Saturday, the authorities released a letter sent by the office of the crown prince ordering the government to strip his wife’s family members of their royally bestowed name, Akkarapongpreecha.
The order appears to leave Princess Srirasm, who was a commoner before she married the crown prince in 2001, in a fragile position.
Yet as is typical with royal matters in Thailand, the scandal is being reported in vague and oblique terms, and very few basic questions are being asked or answered publicly.
“I would like to inform the press that this is an important case, a sensitive case,” Somyot Poompanmoung, the country’s police chief, told the media last week. “Sometimes we cannot reveal deep information and detail.”
Some aspects of the crackdown remain shrouded in mystery. One of the policemen accused of corruption, Col. Akkharawut Limrat, died after plunging from a building. His body was immediately cremated, contrary to traditional Buddhist practices.
Police officials have said little about the death, including where it occurred.
“He got stressed out,” Lt. Gen. Prawut Thavornsiri, a police spokesman, said. “So he jumped out of the building and died.”
Discussion in Thailand, typically a garrulous and freewheeling society, has been muted, at least publicly, on the possible motives of the crackdown and the implications for the monarchy.
“The silence is deafening.....
...click link to continue reading...
http://nytimes.com/2014/12/01/world/asi ... rrer=&_r=0
The implications of the still-unfolding palace purge are not yet fully clear but come at a time of extreme sensitivity surrounding the monarchy, a potent symbol of national unity in a country that has been deeply divided politically for the past decade. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 86, is ailing, and the current scandal adds to a widespread sense of anxiety about succession.
The family members targeted in the purge are related to Princess Srirasm, the wife of Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn and the mother of Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, the presumed heir to the throne after his father.
The scandal began to unfold last week when a group of police officers who have links to the princess’s family was arrested. The group, which police say was led by Lt. Gen. Pongpat Chayapan, the powerful former head of the criminal investigation unit, was accused of running illegal casinos, oil smuggling and money laundering, among other crimes.
Troves of what the police say was ill-gotten wealth were paraded for the news media and prominently displayed on front pages, including what resembled a small museum of ancient Buddhist artifacts. The police also said they had seized 24 gold bars, hundreds of Buddhist amulets, stacks of property deeds and 80 truckloads of rare timber. The police dug out many of the items from an underground vault and released images of a backhoe tearing down a wall to get at them.
Reports of police corruption are common in Thailand, but the highly unusual twist in the case was the charge of lèse-majesté, specifically the allegation, not fully elaborated on by the authorities, that the accused used symbols of the monarchy for their own benefit.
On Saturday, the authorities released a letter sent by the office of the crown prince ordering the government to strip his wife’s family members of their royally bestowed name, Akkarapongpreecha.
The order appears to leave Princess Srirasm, who was a commoner before she married the crown prince in 2001, in a fragile position.
Yet as is typical with royal matters in Thailand, the scandal is being reported in vague and oblique terms, and very few basic questions are being asked or answered publicly.
“I would like to inform the press that this is an important case, a sensitive case,” Somyot Poompanmoung, the country’s police chief, told the media last week. “Sometimes we cannot reveal deep information and detail.”
Some aspects of the crackdown remain shrouded in mystery. One of the policemen accused of corruption, Col. Akkharawut Limrat, died after plunging from a building. His body was immediately cremated, contrary to traditional Buddhist practices.
Police officials have said little about the death, including where it occurred.
“He got stressed out,” Lt. Gen. Prawut Thavornsiri, a police spokesman, said. “So he jumped out of the building and died.”
Discussion in Thailand, typically a garrulous and freewheeling society, has been muted, at least publicly, on the possible motives of the crackdown and the implications for the monarchy.
“The silence is deafening.....
...click link to continue reading...
http://nytimes.com/2014/12/01/world/asi ... rrer=&_r=0
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Re: Family of Thai Princess Is Stripped of Royal Name
I wonder whether the Youtube video of the topless princess at their dog Foo Foos birthday party may have something to do with this. It was the cause of the divorce for sure. LINK: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... style.html
Re: Family of Thai Princess Is Stripped of Royal Name
Yeah it's difficult to fathom who on earth could ever have thought that video was a good idea.wackyjacky wrote:I wonder whether the Youtube video of the topless princess at their dog Foo Foos birthday party may have something to do with this. It was the cause of the divorce for sure. LINK: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... style.html
- phuketrichard
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Re: Family of Thai Princess Is Stripped of Royal Name
the video is years old
Its all political and distancing himself from the downfall of her family
Its all political and distancing himself from the downfall of her family
In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
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